Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-321283 discloses conventional sample analyzers which have a movable holding section being capable of holding reagent containers that contain reagent.
The sample analyzer disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-321283 is provided with a housing means for housing a plurality of reagent bottles that contain reagent, measuring means for measuring the amount of residual reagent remaining in reagent bottles which are housed in the housing means, specifying means for specifying reagent bottles to be replaced based on the measurement results of the measuring means, and moving means for moving a reagent bottle specified by the specifying means to a predetermined position.
In sample analyzers that use a plurality of reagents, even though the amount of residual reagent remaining in a reagent container is insufficient for measurement of a sample, it is not always necessary to replace the reagent since the sample analyzers are able to hold a reserve reagent container containing the same reagent as the insufficient reagent. That is, insufficient reagent is not necessarily a target to be replaced. On the other hand, it is sometimes necessary to replace a reagent for reasons other than the insufficiency of the reagent. For example, a reagent whose validity date has expired needs to be replaced. Accordingly, a problem arises in the sample analyzer disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-321283 that a reagent container which contains a reagent which a user desires to replace is not always be moved to a predetermined position (pick up position) at which the container is able to be picked up inasmuch as the container containing insufficient reagent is automatically moved to the pick up position when the sample analyzer detects that reagent within the reagent container is insufficient.